🕓 2025/7/18
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Table of Contents
About Oita Cuisine
Oita Prefecture lies in the north‑eastern part of Kyushu, bordered by the rich waters of the Bungo Channel and Beppu Bay and encircled by mountains such as Mount Yufu and the Kuju Range. The swift currents of the Hayasui Seto foster exceptional fish offshore, while the interior is dotted with some of Japan’s most famous hot‑spring resorts. For centuries, a seafaring culture and a tradition of therapeutic bathing have overlapped here, refining a wide variety of ingredients and cooking techniques.
Among the foods that best embody this culinary heritage are Ryukyu‑don, Toriten, and Seki‑aji & Seki‑saba. Loved by locals and irresistibly attractive to visitors, these dishes showcase the depth of flavour that arises where sea, mountains, and hot springs meet. When you travel through Oita, be sure to taste them and experience the region’s uniquely layered food culture.
Oita’s Top Three Signature Dishes
1. Ryukyu‑don
出展：食べログ
● The Appeal of Ryukyu‑don
Ryukyu‑don is a grown‑up rice bowl in which the sophistication of a fishing port and the allure of Oita unfold with every bite. The freshest fish of the day—often Seki‑aji, yellowtail, or mackerel at the height of their season—is sliced thin and briefly marinated in a sweet‑savory sauce of soy, sake, mirin, ground sesame, and ginger. The treatment draws out the fish’s full flavour.
When you lift the rice and marinated fish to your lips, the sauce’s gentle sweetness melds with the fish’s crystalline texture. Partway through, many diners pour hot dashi or tea over the bowl, enjoying a “second paradise.” Paired with a glass of well‑chilled local sake after a long day’s work, Ryukyu‑don has the special magic of instantly putting adults in high spirits.
● History
The roots of Ryukyu‑don lie where the rich fishing grounds carried on the Kuroshio Current intersected the fishermen’s sense of “efficiency and playfulness.” Whether the late Edo period or the dawn of Meiji, fishermen along the Oita coast routinely dipped just‑caught horse mackerel or mackerel into a mixture of soy, sake, mirin, sesame, and ginger to preserve them on board. That practical “oki‑zuke” soaked the flesh just enough to keep and served as a satisfying meal after hard work at sea. In time the dish came to be called ryukyu.
Two charming theories remain about the name. One points to Okinawan (Ryukyuan) fishermen who are said to have brought the marinating technique north; the other links the word to tea master Sen no Rikyu, famous for his love of sesame, suggesting that Rikyu‑ae evolved into ryukyu.
● Where to Eat It
- Restaurant: Nidaime Yoichi (二代目与一)
- Nidaime Yoichi sets itself apart by using Oita’s renowned brand fish, Seki‑aji, raised in the swift tides of the Hōyo Strait. Perfectly fresh Seki‑aji is marinated in Kyushu’s characteristically sweet soy sauce, which highlights the fish’s innate flavour and leaves a lingering richness. The addition of sesame and wasabi adds further depth.
- Address: 4‑1‑21 Chūō‑machi, Ōita‑shi, Ōita
- Access: About 3–9 minutes on foot from JR Ōita Station (Funai‑chūō Exit / North Exit)
- Google Maps：https://maps.app.goo.gl/i7VPPbxPWG8mr8yY9
2. Toriten
● The Appeal of Toriten
When battered chicken rises from the oil and steam curls upward, that aroma alone is pure Oita: toriten. Its charm lies in thigh or breast meat marinated, coated in egg‑rich tempura batter, then fried twice so the outside stays light while the inside remains juicy. Bite through the crisp shell and savoury chicken floods the palate, while kabosu citrus soy with a dab of mustard refreshes the finish.
Lighter than kara‑age yet more fragrant than standard tempura, toriten’s balance explains its popularity—from local diners to home tables and even school lunches. After sampling Bungo Strait sashimi with a drink, pop piping‑hot toriten into your mouth, the green kabosu glinting beside it, and another cup practically begs to follow—an essential taste of “Oita time.”
● History
Toriten’s story begins in early Shōwa‑era Beppu with the clatter of pans. Shiro Miyamoto, trained at the Imperial Hotel, opened Restaurant Toyoken in 1926 and created “chicken kamaboko tempura (炸鶏片),” fusing Western and Japanese ideas. The airy fried dish quickly won fame; soon the shop’s noren curtain proclaimed two bold characters: とり天. Thus a single plate of fried chicken captured the heat of a fishing town, the playfulness of Western cuisine, and the local love of poultry—still flashing its golden signal for beer across the counter today.
● Where to Eat It
- Restaurant: Restaurant Toyoken (レストラン東洋軒)
- Toyoken’s toriten stands out for several reasons. It begins with Japanese thigh meat, prized for richness and juiciness. The batter is unique, made with freshly gathered whole eggs mixed with wheat and potato flours; instead of the crisp crunch of ordinary tempura, it yields a moist, tender shell that gently envelopes the meat’s flavour.
- Address: 7‑8‑22 Ishigaki‑higashi, Beppu‑shi, Ōita
- Access: About 10 minutes by car from JR Beppu Station
- Google Maps：https://maps.app.goo.gl/y2mKZF9jEGpguuJw8
3. Seki‑aji & Seki‑saba
出展：食べログ
● The Appeal of Seki‑aji & Seki‑saba
Anyone familiar with the strait off Saganoseki calls these brand fish simply “Seki‑mono.” Raised in the fierce tides of the Hayasui Seto—the narrowest part of the Bungo Channel—these horse mackerel and mackerel develop firm flesh and a faint golden sheen.
Oita chefs make full use of this treasure. Cut thick and steeped in sesame soy for ryukyu, the aroma of the sea meets sesame richness; shaped into nigiri, the fish’s fat melts at the warmth of the rice; lightly seared or salt‑grilled, it takes on savoury depth, finished with a squeeze of kabosu. In every preparation, refinement and wildness coexist on the plate.
● History
The tale of Seki‑aji and Seki‑saba is the gradual crystallisation of fishermen’s skill and market savvy around Hayasui Seto. By the late Edo period, fish landed at Saganoseki were already treated as special “Seki‑mono,” prized for their taut flesh and soft metallic glow. Their clear branding emerged from the late Shōwa into early Heisei eras, when the Saganoseki Fishery Cooperative unified quality standards and distribution, insisting on single‑hook fishing and ike‑jime processing. Around 1990 the cooperative placed the names “Seki‑aji” and “Seki‑saba” front and centre, embarking on full‑scale branding to protect their reputation.
● Where to Eat Them
- Restaurant: Amabe‑no‑Sato Seki‑aji Seki‑saba‑kan / Shiraki Coast Restaurant
- At Amabe‑no‑Sato, Seki‑aji and Seki‑saba are served at peak freshness—thanks to the restaurant’s proximity to the port. Dishes focus on sashimi and kaisendon, which best showcase the fish’s natural flavour. The famed “Seki Seafood Don” comes piled so high with thick slices that they spill over the bowl, a volume as impressive as the taste.
- Address: 949 Ōaza Shiraki, Ōita‑shi, Ōita
- Access: About 15 minutes by car from JR Kōzaki Station
- Google Maps：https://maps.app.goo.gl/xsvJKoWT9puGdJRE8